17.12.08: Pesto and pea risotto

A night out to see the Boosh initiated an early dinner. He prepared the risotto with some of the pesto He made and froze earlier, and added the usual suspects to make the risotto dream a reality. A mixed leaf salad with sweetfire beetroot, radishes and avo stopped by for a chat.

HE SAYS: Instead of the alternative of grabbing a bite and running to catch a train, this meal was a lot more civilised and tasty. If only I could get the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pot it would be the perfect no-fuss, easy meal and light washing up deal everyone can enjoy. I ended up soaking the pan overnight, which did the trick of lifting the remnants of the night before. The return of the shweetfire variety of beetroot was a pleasant addition to the salad, not unlike an old friend you haven't seen in a while, popping round for a cuppa.

SHE SAYS: Certainly more of a gourmet turnout than I was expecting before embarking on our 45-min journey to the zooniverse of the Boosh. Lots of meaty porcini added delicate flava to the savoury pesto richness. My only quibble was the speed of consumption, which delivered too much to my tummy too soon.

03.12.08: Squid risotto with French bnz and mangetout

Eager to expand Their risotto repertoire, He tried out the "easy squid risotto with fresh tomato and parsley" recipe card picked up at the local Waitrose. The French bean and mangetout with hazelnut and orange zest side salad was nabbed from Our new best friend.

HE SAYS: I'm pretty impressed with this new risotto. A very different dish to our regular pesto variety, with far more subtle flavours and subtle overtones. I deviated from the recipe a lot, adding white wine, far more fish stock and more tomatoes. I also cooked the base risotto like the one We usually cook (much faster, and easier to check levels of doneness and add more liquid if necessary) and not by their silly baking method.

The salad was nice and zesty, crunchy and obviously nutty, with the roasted hazelnuts adding intense toasty intrigue to the mix. The orange zest was a little too intermittent in adding citrus so I squeezed half of the orange over the bnz, which helped. The recipe called for hazelnut oil, but I substituted peanut oil and it seemed to work just as well. Overall, a great meal but perhaps less of a winter warmer than is needed with the cold coming in.

SHE SAYS: This has got to be the healthiest indulgence ever, this here risotto. Squid done right always has a slightly sweet taste, but grilled and piled into creamy risotto tinged with tomato acidity, its humble flavour offering develops moreish complexity. He did a great job in deviating from the recipe - not sure this would be quite such a winner without the wine and extra stock, as the flavour was still v. light.

The salad was positively gourmet, with mangetout and green bnz matching crisp to crunch with the roasty hazelnuts (I couldn't stop picking them out of the bowl).

28.11.08: Re-run of risotto and lasagne episodes

Does what it says on the tin: He had yesterday's risotto while She heated up Wednesday's lamb lasagne. Good plan for a Friday nite, yes?

SHE SAYS: Same as Wednesday, though I don't think it improved in the fridge as some casserole-type-things do. Although it's a shame He didn't enjoy it, I'm quite pleased to have all the leftovers to myself (the rest will play a lunchtime role, Methinks).

HE SAYS: Unlike Her meal, I think this risotto benefited from a night out in the fridge with its food friends and seemed to mature a bit in flava and gooey loveliness. I remembered to sprinkle some parmesan to top it off nicely. A salad of sweetfire beetroot, avo, pear, carrot and mixed leaves left me fulfilled and extremely satisfied.

27.11.08: Pea, pesto and mushroom risotto

Playing it safe, He put together this favourite made up of peas, homemade sundried tomato pesto, regular mushrooms and dried porcini 'shrooms too, pairing it with a spinach salad of avo, julienned carrots, and physalis. And he even managed to plate it in time to get Us out the door for a members-only open house at the Tate.

HE SAYS: I think the dried porcini mushrooms added another kind of intense savoury flavoursome something to this batch. I forgot to dress it with the usual sprinkle of parmesan cheese and basil but I don't think it suffered for it. The avo was nice and creamy in the salad tonight, by the way.

SHE SAYS: Always cheered to see a bowl of this risotto coming my way. The usual raves apply: garlic-basil-parmesan heaven from the pesto; luxurious texture from the arborio rice; and a subtle richness from tthe mushrooms. Quibble: the peas needed a little more time to soften, but they were ok. Thouroughly enjoyed the mix of sweet, tart, crisp and smoooooth from the salad too.

24.11.08: Out to Mildreds

After an evening of thought-provoking storytelling in town, They decided to introduce the veggie wonders of Mildred's to some willing compatriots.

HE SAYS: I had the veggie burrito (above) once again and I was not disappointed. The pinto bnz were yum: tender and well seasoned. Loads of fresh salsa, guacamole and sour cream helped the deliciousness factor a little too, I'm sure. The pud that She and I shared was dark and dense and richly satisfying. After a few pints and sharing a bottle of wine, We stumbled home late, me more than slightly tipsy but ultimately pleased I didn't need to drive the porcelain bus that night.
SHE SAYS: Funnily enough, I had the same thing I did last time we came here - sunblushed tomato and buffalo mozzarella risotto cakes served with wilted spinach, green beans and grape mustard cream sauce. Really, I wasn't sure when I ordered it if it was quite the same item. My mind conspired with my tummy, then, to have this combo of creamy, fresh and just a tad zesy all over again. And thanks to our dining companions, there was more to come...

Some sort of choccy tofu chzcake with whole raspberries in. Not truly as good as it sounds or looks – the choccy was not so prominent and I'm not sure I exactly love the rasberry-choc combo anyway. But it was a splendid idea.

10.10.08: Risotto redux and traditional Austrian fare

While She is out of town for a few days, He warmed up the rest of the pea, mushroom and pesto risotto and added a new rocket, tomato, radish salad along with yesterday's dressing.

HE SAYS: A quick, easy and thoroughly nourishing evening meal. Who would think that risotto is fast food? The salad was given a boost by the dressing, having intensified in the fridge for a day, yum. Meanwhile...

She simply could not get away with covert dinnertime photography while surrounded by curious colleagues, but She can detail the 4-course menu served in the ASI Lodge dining room pictured above. Vegetable strudel on tomato sauce; 'Oberlander' creamy cheese soup; charfilet fish (billed as 'like salmon' and bred near the lodge) with a zucchini-tomato ragout on 'coloured noodles'; and pancake filled with apricot jam topped with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce.

SHE SAYS: Given how many of my entries begin with 'after a tough day at work', a weekend getaway to Austria courtesy of the co. was v. welcome in some ways (multiple-course meals being but one of the luxuries on offer), and less welcome in others (more time with the people you see most anyway). Food was not a hugely strong suit, but it was perfectly nice.

The strudel encased a mildly savoury puree of some sort of veg, and the tomato sauce was mildly sweet. The soup was the star, a shallow bowl of thin cream artfully streaked with some sort of brown salty sauce. Most people thought the fish was amazing, but I thought it was merely ok; it was nothing like salmon, more like grilled catfish but not quite as strongly flavoured. Noodles and ragout were enh. (Sorry, 'enh' is all I can think to call it!) Dessert was just as you'd expect, and not remarkable, just indulgent, and a bit heavy after strudel pastry and pasta.

09.10.08: Pea, pesto and mushroom risotto

He gathered up the ingredients and proceeded to create this infamous risotto consisting of peas, pesto and mushrooms paired with a salad of rocket, mixed leafs, radishes and figs. All dressed up with a dressing of Her design, consisting of Colman's mustard, a splash of white wine vinegar, Tasmanian leatherwood tree honey ('with a lychee flavour', how innaresting), a pinch salt and pepper.

HE SAYS: Having prepared the risotto earlier in the day it had time for its flavours to mature and strengthen. Was happy with the outcome and enjoyed the severe savouriness of the dish. The parmesan supplied a salty edge, and the basil, a nice freshness to the taste. Her salad dressing was also great and added a hot and sweet mix to the surrounding greenery.

SHE SAYS: It was my nite to cook, but He handily put this together and had it in the fridge for warming when I came home, bless 'im. And it was a fine batch, too, one of the best. The fragrant pesto and intense parmesan (a truly excellent and well-priced Tesco variety) mixed with the mild, humble peas and plain yet meaty mushrooms to play on every tastebud I've got. In a word, yummilicious. My new salad dressing is no wasabi-lime, but the Colman's is almost as nose-wrinkling as the green goodness, and the honey gave it all a gorgeous floral note.

14.08.08: The Pesto and the Pea Risotto

Before We set out for an unusually late school nite, He cooked up the Milanese risotto with plenty of fresh basil and judicious application of Her ho-made pesto (the frozen mass quantities are steadily decreasing!). A herby watercress, physalis and tomato salad looked on.

HE SAYS: It was my first time making this new fave dish of ours. It tasted like it has previously: savoury, rich, with an almost gravy like sauciness, which was a relief as risotto rice is easy to screw up and make lumpy and porridge-like if you take your eye off it. The salad was elegantly thrown together with the physalis, which worked the tang, sweet thang rather marvelously, I must say.

SHE SAYS: A much nicer and rib-stickin' fuel-up than I was expecting before we dashed off to meet friends in Isle of Dogs. I think We both prefer to cook off more wine than the recipe suggests (1 cup), but we only had just enough. Still deeply satisfyng and saw me thru te next, um, 6 hours!

05.08.08: Milanese risotto redux and scrambled eggs with salad

On their tod tonight, He finished off the risotto from last night...

...while She later pulled together one of the fastest cooked dinners in anyone's repertoire: tossed salad and scrambled eggs, plus the famed lime-wasabi dressing.

SHE SAYS: More filling than it might seem, and much more appetising to look at the the photo indicates! (Could not figure out why camera was darkening every pic on any setting with greenish hue.) My simple crunchy salad of radishes, tomatoes and a bit of avo was lifted to the level of yum with the nose-tingling wasabi dressing, which actually has some of the sulfuric bouquet of egg - again, a more pleasant happening than you might think! I like my scrambles pretty dry, and this batch was perfectly to taste, and I ate it it happily with pinches of kosher salt.

HE SAYS: Just as good if not better then last night, the flavours had a chance to intensify in the fridge. A very nish dish to come home to and scoff before rushing off to take care of bizness. Forgot to pull together a salad plate, but the beetroot is set to make an appearance on my plate soon enough. Stay tuned, 'till next time, tarrah for now.

04.08.08: Milanese risotto with physalis salad

Slow cooking fast with the world's easiest risotto, with peas, mushrooms, and ho-made pesto. The physalis and roasted pumpkin seed salad eagerly pushed into the frame for a close-up.

HE SAYS: The added white wine makes this dish so satisfyingly tasty, even without the exotic mushroom mix She usually uses, this was a top draw dinner, no word of a lie. Who knew frozen peas could be elevated to such a posh nosh status. The salad was piquant, shweet salty and toasty at the same time, it's magic I tell you.

SHE SAYS: This is one of the Most Consistent meals we've had, and it's closing in on lemon chicken and magic lentils for the title. Always easy when you have pesto in your (freezer) pocket, eminently savoury and deeply comforting. And how I do love the inimitable physalis, it's subtle tang playing ever so nicely with the roasty-toasty pumpkin seeds.

14.07.08: Milanese risotto with strawberry salad

Monday means it's time for the world's easiest risotto, with peas, mushrooms, and ho-made pesto (made previously). None of this stand-over-and-stir bidness, you pile it all in the pot and boil it down. Recipe on offer if you ask!

HE SAYS: Although simple to make, this dish is everything but simple in taste. The variety of 'shrooms and the wine all help to give it a complex and luscious range o' flav-a-flavs. I could've eaten more if not for holding back a portion for lunch tomorrow (which will be even more intense in the flavour department after having time to brew). The strawberry salad waz good but then you add the balsamic vinegar and, wow, it goes off the taste chart entirely.

SHE SAYS: I think I added a tad too much white wine (at His urging) as had more tang than I would have liked. No matter, it was still a winner with a soft but not gloopy grain and an excellent competition between the basil and parmesan for flavour kingship. The modestly named English strawberries can compete with their Jubilee cousins any day, and carried off the balsamic drizzle ever so sweetly.

12.07.08: Out to Mildred's

After schlepping thru the end of the summer sales, We met up with temporary transplant Joe before his departure back to the States for good food and good times at the cosiest place in Soho: Mildred's. Sharing was definitely on the menu: chargrilled artichoke crostini with lemon aioli, plus a warm butternut squash and blue cheese filo tart started off our gourmet veggie adventure.

He and Joe were burrito brothers, each tucking into a generous wrap of re-fried beans, corn and red pepper topped with tomato lime salsa, guacamole, smoked cheddar and sour cream - served with leaf salad, of course...
...while She savoured the sunblushed tomato and buffalo mozzarella risotto cakes served with wilted spinach, green beans and grape mustard cream sauce.

HE SAYS: After last nights gruel this meal put the world right once again. The appetizers were tasty, not overpowering in seasoning but delicate in a good way. The burrito was hefty, saucy and packed with creamy good stuff. A good night out I thinks.

SHE SAYS: It was hard to keep the fork from travelling over to the starter plates - the artichoke and aioli were esp moreish, the salad leaves flimsy (but fresh!) excuses for mopping up mayo. The maple-roasted squash mooshed up nicely with the tangy blue cheese, not to be sneered at any day. But my main was the star, creamy and crispy, with hints of healthfulness from the sprouts on top and the perfectly steamed green bnz, not to mention the silky flags of spinach. The sauce was not overly piquant, and the risotto had plenty of hearty tomato kick. Happy sigh.

24.06.08: Green risotto with broiled portobello mushrooms

She pulled out the stops on a Tuesday nite and tried the really green risotto in the latest Waitrose free mag, subs-ing spelt grains for risotto rice and topping it off with grilled portobello mushrooms instead of the suggested roast chicken. He swabbed the mushies with balsamic, salt'n'pepa, and Her ho-made rose harissa (yep, new variety - comment to ask for exclusive recipe!). Noting pretty food photography in recent Observer Food mag, She left the breakfast radishes whole in the salad, which was also fortified with Sweetfire beetroot.

HE SAYS: Fantastico! this must be a strong contender for risotto of the week. This green pile of delight was minty fresh and packed with flava. The molasses-like consistency of the vegetable stock from M&S seemed to add another depth of yum while the white wine reduction only helped intensify an already tasty plate. The mushrooms were meaty, beaty, big and bouncy, okay maybe not bouncy, but intensely satisfying. After all the soft food, it was nice to put my teeth back in and crunch into my one of my fave vegetables, the humble radish. Oh, and the beetroot was ever so good, to boot.

SHE SAYS: Very fresh-tastingand more-ish, though I don't think the spelt pack's claim of 'great for risotto!' really holds true. As I suspected it might, the spelt cooked up like barley - springy, though soft, but not creamy. It did have far less intrusive flavour than barley. It didn't subtract from my great enjoyment of the risotto, though - it was like a decadent mint pesto thingy. Mushrooms added meaty texture and depth of flavour (with just a hint of rose, lots of garlic, and mischievous chili bite). Liked the whole radishes - don't know why it makes a difference, but biting off as much as you want vs daintily chewing slices is utterly satisfying.

09.06.08: Risotto with mushrooms and peas

Play it again, ma'am: She used up the second tub of ho-made pesto from the freezer to throw together the world's easiest risotto once again, then used Her ample free time (ha!) to concoct a salad of physalis, bunched radishes, cherry toms, and young mustard leaves.

SHE SAYS: Even more flavourful than last time, though I've no idea why. Maybe I snuck in a little more boullion. Nice balance of savouriness to bright pesto flavour, and I didn't even think about salt. Would like to take it up a level with a few porcini mushies next time. I've searched high and low for this recipe online since we found it in a free paper, but said free paper pretends that it doesn't publish recipes even though its site lists every other minute topic it covers in print. Well, folks, if you want it let us know and we'll type it on out....but you gotta ask!

HE SAYS: Wow, tonight's risotto was exceptional, better then last week's version, and that was mighty tasty too. The rice was so well-cooked - soft and a little mushy but not glue-like - and the
consistency of the whole dish was right on. I think the chicken stock and white wine fusion brought this too another level of yum. I love pesto in pasta, but mixed in with the mushrooms and wine/stock, it created a new way of appreciating its intense flavour. The salad also had a nice crunchy element, what with the radishes, and a tart element what with the physalis. We ate the whole salad bowl portion, but we have some risotto left for lunch tomorrow, by which time the taste will be outta this world.

01.05.08: Risotto with mushrooms and peas

A serendipitous sensation: on the train home last nite, He ripped a recipe our of some freebie mag left on the seat, and tonite She cooked up a Milanese Risotto starring peas, chestnut and oyster mushrooms, white wine, chicken broth and spring onions, plus pesto handily rescued from the freezer. (Actually, there's nothing Milanese about this risotto - normally that's v. plain, with just a few saffron threads - none of this veggie and pesto nonsense.) A salad with garlicky olives, some sundried tomato and tiny bits of lemon filled in any remaining corners.

SHE SAYS: Mmm-mmm good! I had my doubts about this recipe, as it required very little stirring and no sauteeing of any ingredients except the rice (was this reeeally a risotto?) - and I admit I was feeling snobbish about the frozen pea component. Well, bust my buttons, was I wrong! It was rich yet subtle, creamy and satisfying - and not as goosome as many another risotto I've made. It was also the easiest risotto I've ever turned a hand to, so I'm sure it will have an encore.

HE SAYS: Agree with her, it was fab. Lots of intense gravy-esque sophisticated flavours and meaty mushroom textures made this a winner. Salad weren't bad neither, espesh with lemony garlic olive type fixin's, ooh mama.

04.01.07: Out to Angelo's

Angelo's is our only neighborhood Italian restaurant worth the walk. The food is only so-so, but they specialise in atmosphere, and when Mr Angelo himself is working the front of the house, you might even get free tiramisu. We were going to indulge in a pepperoni pizza, but it was 'finished'.

SHE SAYS: My chicken risotto Milanese was good and creamy, but I always think they put in too much saffron. Higher on quantity than quality, but I was just happy to be at Angelo's on a Friday nite.

HE SAYS: Had spaghetti vongole, which was tasty enough, but I really had my taste buds set for pizza, which is unusual - we rarely opt for pizza anymore (usually the crust is too thick and doughy everywhere you go around here).